JP4617608B2 - Search system with free alternative keyword settings - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a search system that searches information from a database or the like according to a search condition.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Search systems are used to search for target information in an environment that handles a large amount of information, such as searching for people in a human resource management system, searching documents in a dictionary system, and searching data on the Web.
[0003]
For example, there are systems for searching for people that manage job search and job information as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-57213.
In this system, a job seeker registers information such as skills, and a search can be performed using the skills of human resources desired by the recruiting company as keywords. Conversely, information on human resources that the recruiting company wants can be registered, and the job seeker can search for the type of job he / she wants to find.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the case of a system that is used by an unspecified number of users as in the above-described system, even if the registered keywords are the same in terms of content, they have different names depending on the user and the time of registration.
[0005]
The conventional search system can only search for a phrase that approximates a designated keyword by fuzzy search or the like, and cannot search even if the name is very different even if the content is the same.
[0006]
For example, when searching for people based on skills, if you search with the keyword “database specialist”, the conventional method only searches for people who have the qualification of “database specialist”. The qualifications of are not searched even if they are equivalent.
[0007]
However, people's skills are not something that can be specified with a single keyword, but may be thought of as being equivalent to that keyword by supplementing with other things. For example, if a company has a “software development engineer” and a vendor “A company DB specialist” or “B company DB engineer” instead of a “database specialist”, the same skills as a database specialist can be obtained. Suppose you treat it as something. In this case, in order to search for a person equivalent to a database specialist, the search is performed separately for each keyword. Furthermore, if the person performing the search does not know this rule, only those who have the qualification of “database specialist” will be searched. This is true not only for skills and qualifications, but also for other information.
[0008]
Furthermore, since the definition of being regarded as equivalent to a specific keyword by such a combination of different keywords differs depending on users such as individuals and companies, it is necessary to be able to freely define each user.
[0009]
In data retrieval, a variable input method that allows free input is generally used for an interface. However, it cannot be used unless the user understands a phrase that should be a keyword. On the other hand, there are cases where a fixed input method is used to select and input keywords that are listed, but in this case, only the keywords intended by the administrator can be used, so only search that is inconvenient for the user. I can't.
[0010]
The present invention is for solving the above-described problems of the search system, and by searching for alternative keywords other than the input keyword at the same time based on the keyword related information, information corresponding to the input keyword is searched. It can be so. Furthermore, by making it possible to set keyword-related information for each user, it is possible to perform a search according to the purpose of each individual / organization.
Furthermore, an easy-to-use interface that can be used regardless of the skill level of the user is provided without sacrificing the user's freedom in the interface for registering and retrieving information.
[0011]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The search system according to the present invention includes a storage means for storing information, an input means for receiving an input of a keyword as a condition for performing a search, a search means for executing a search based on the keyword, an input interface and a search result In the search system comprising display means for displaying the information, the storage means stores information to be searched, a fixed keyword used for the search, and an alternative keyword group that replaces the search keyword by one or more keywords, and the search means And a means for expanding the search keyword into the alternative keyword group and searching for information equivalent to the search keyword with one or a plurality of alternative keywords when searching based on the input search keyword Yes. Furthermore, the search system includes means for editing fixed keywords and alternative keywords.
[0012]
In the above search system, as a method for inputting a search keyword in an interface for performing a search, both a fixed input means for selecting from a fixed character string and a variable input means for allowing free input are set to items having the same attribute. It prepares for.
[0013]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a human resource management system that manages / searches / reads human resource information will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
[0014]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a human resource management system. In FIG. 1, 1 is a human resource management system for managing human resource information, 11 is an interface creation means for creating an interface for inputting a search keyword, 12 is a search means for executing search processing based on the input keyword, 121 Is a keyword search means for performing a search with the input keyword, 122 is an alternative keyword search means for performing a search with a keyword that is a substitute for the input keyword, and 13 is a data edit for editing the contents of the database based on the input data Means, 2 is a storage means such as a hard disk device for storing various data, 21 is a human resource DB (database) storing personal data such as qualification, technology, work history, education, etc. 22 is a data registration / search for data in the human resource DB 21 Fixed keyword DB that stores fixed keywords to be performed, 23 is a keyword DB An alternative keyword DB 3 that stores keywords that can be used as alternatives to the data 2, displays an interface created by the interface creation unit 11, a search result by the search unit 12, editing information of the data editing unit 13, and the like. Display means 4 such as a display is an input means 4 such as a keyboard or a mouse for inputting search keywords and data editing information.
[0015]
FIG. 2 shows a part related to qualification in the database stored in the human resource DB 21. 211 is an ID added for each individual, and 212 is a qualification possessed.
[0016]
FIG. 3 shows the contents of the database stored in the fixed keyword DB 22. 221 is a category to which the keyword belongs, and 222 is a fixed keyword.
[0017]
FIG. 4 shows the contents of the database stored in the alternative keyword DB 23. 231 is a fixed keyword, 233 is an alternative keyword that can be treated as an alternative to the fixed keyword 231, and 232 is an ID indicating a relationship between the alternative keywords. An alternative keyword having the same ID for the same fixed keyword 231 is regarded as equivalent to the fixed keyword when all of them are satisfied. A substitute keyword with a different ID is processed as being equivalent to a fixed keyword if it has any of them. Taking FIG. 4 as an example, the keyword “database specialist” is a requirement of “(“ Software Engineer ”and“ Company A DB Specialist ”) or (“ Software Engineer ”and“ Company B DB Engineer ”)” If it satisfies the above, it is defined as equivalent to a “database specialist”.
[0018]
The fixed keyword DB 22 and the alternative keyword DB 23 can register the setting for each individual or group. For example, in a technical department, in a technical department, in order to grasp the skills of subordinates, “(“ software engineer ”and“ "A company DB specialist") or ("Software engineer" and "B company DB engineer") "is handled as a" database specialist ", but in accounting, qualification allowance is set for each qualification separately. Settings such as handling and searching are possible.
[0019]
(1) Search Process The outline of the search process will be described below with reference to FIG. When there is a user search use request, the human resource management system 1 acquires fixed keyword data from the fixed keyword DB 22, creates an input interface for search conditions by the interface creation unit 11, and displays it on the display unit 3.
FIG. 5 is an example of this input interface. Reference numeral 30 denotes an interface keyword input area, which has a fixed input means 301 for selecting and inputting a keyword, and a variable input means 302 for inputting a free character string from an input medium such as a keyboard. Because the keywords are lined up, you can use them just by selecting them, even if you are not familiar with them. Moreover, in the case of an experienced user, a search with more keywords can be performed by directly inputting a keyword to be searched. This makes it possible to provide an easy-to-use interface regardless of the skill level of the user. A search method designation unit 303 designates a search method for searching for a person having all keywords or a person having any keyword for keywords input by the fixed input unit 301 and the variable input unit 302. To do. Reference numeral 304 denotes an alternative keyword search specifying means for specifying whether or not to perform a search using an alternative keyword. Reference numeral 305 denotes a search execution button. When the button is pressed, a search is executed with the content input in the keyword input area 30. A condition clear button 306 clears the content input in the keyword input area 30 when the button is pressed.
[0020]
Based on the input search keyword information, the search processing unit 12 executes a search. The search process will be described below with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS.
[0021]
First, when an alternative keyword is not used (NO route in step S1), a search is performed using only the input keyword. The input keyword is added to the search keyword list until the processing for all the input keywords is completed (NO route in step S2 and step S3). When all the input keywords are completed (YES route in Step 2), the process proceeds to the next step.
[0022]
When an alternative keyword is used (YES route of step S1), the alternative keyword is searched as a search keyword in addition to the input keyword. Until all the input keywords are completed, the alternative keywords are expanded in the form of search keywords (step S5) and added to the search keyword list (step S6).
[0023]
To expand the search keyword, first, the expansion keyword is initialized with the input keyword (step S51). Next, keyword information to be substituted for this input keyword is extracted from the substitute keyword DB 13 (step S52). The alternative keyword is edited until the extracted alternative keyword ends (NO route in step S53). If there is no alternative keyword with the same alternative ID as the extracted alternative keyword (NO route of step S54), the alternative keyword is added to the expanded keyword under the OR condition (step S55). If there are alternative keywords with the same alternative ID (YES route in step S54), they are all extracted and combined with an AND condition (step S56). Further, the combined keyword is added to the expanded keyword under the OR condition (step S57). When all the related keywords have been processed (YES route in step S53), the expansion process ends.
[0024]
After creating the search keyword list, search conditions are created according to the information specified by the search method specifying means 303. When “any” is selected as the search method (NO route of step S7), all the keywords in the created search keyword list are connected by OR condition to be used as search condition (step S8). When “all” is selected as the search method (YES route in step S7), all the keywords in the created search keyword list are connected by the AND condition to be used as the search condition (step S9).
[0025]
After creating the search condition, the search is executed according to the condition (step 10).
FIG. 6 is a screen display example of the search result displayed on the display means 3. Reference numeral 311 denotes a classification mark for distinguishing the search result between the input search keyword and the substitute keyword. A person with “◎” directly corresponds to the input search keyword, and a person who is not attached is determined to be equivalent to the search keyword by the alternative keyword. Reference numeral 312 denotes a list of affiliations and names of the searched persons. Reference numeral 313 denotes keyword information that is a search target.
[0026]
(2) Keyword Editing Process An overview of the keyword editing process will be described below with reference to FIG.
When there is a keyword editing request, the human resource management system 10 acquires keyword data from the fixed keyword DB 22 and substitute keyword data from the keyword DB 23, creates an input interface, and displays it on the display means 31.
[0027]
FIG. 7 shows an example of a keyword editing screen. Reference numeral 321 denotes an additional keyword input area for inputting a keyword to be newly registered. A registered keyword list 324 displays a list of keywords registered in the fixed keyword DB 22. Select the keyword you want to edit or the keyword you want to register as an alternative keyword. Reference numeral 322 denotes a keyword addition button. By pressing this button, the keyword input in the additional keyword input area 321 is added to the registered keyword list 324 and registered in the keyword DB 22. Reference numeral 323 denotes a keyword extraction button. By pressing this button, the keyword selected in the registered keyword list 324 is extracted to the additional keyword input area 321. Moreover, it deletes from fixed keyword DB22. Reference numeral 325 denotes an alternative keyword registration button. When this button is pressed, a transition is made to an alternative keyword registration screen for registering an alternative keyword of the keyword selected in the registered keyword list 324. When the user wants to newly register a keyword, the keyword can be registered by inputting the keyword in the additional keyword input area 321 and pressing the keyword addition button 322.
[0028]
If it is desired to delete or edit a keyword, it can be retrieved from the DB by selecting from the registered keyword list 323 and pressing the keyword retrieval button 322. To edit, press the add button after rewriting. To delete, clear the item. When a keyword that can be substituted for the keyword is registered for the registered keyword, the substitute keyword registration screen can be opened by pressing the substitute keyword registration button 325.
[0029]
FIG. 8 is an example of an alternative keyword registration screen. Reference numeral 331 denotes a keyword for editing an alternative keyword. Reference numeral 332 denotes a variable input area for an alternative keyword to be added, and a keyword to be registered as an alternative keyword is input as a character string. Reference numeral 333 denotes a fixed input area for an alternative keyword to be added, which is a list of keywords registered in the fixed keyword DB 22 and selects a keyword to be registered as an alternative keyword. A plurality of these can be selected. A keyword clear button 334 clears the keyword specified in the variable input area 332 and the fixed input area 333. Reference numeral 335 denotes an alternative keyword list which is a list of alternative keywords registered in the alternative keyword DB 23 and registered as alternative keywords for the keyword 331. A plurality of keywords that are substituted by a plurality of keywords are displayed in one line. An alternative keyword extraction button 336 extracts the alternative keyword selected from the alternative keyword list 332 to the variable input area 332 and the fixed input area 333. Moreover, it deletes from alternative keyword DB23. Reference numeral 337 denotes an alternative keyword registration button, which adds the contents input in the variable input area 332 and the fixed input area 333 to the alternative keyword list 332 and registers it in the alternative keyword DB 23.
[0030]
When newly registering an alternative keyword, all the keywords corresponding to the keyword 331 are input by combining them. For example, if both “software development engineer” and “Company A database specialist” correspond to “database specialist”, both “software development engineer” and “company A database specialist” are input. At this time, when registering a character string not registered as a keyword, the character string is input to the fixed input area 332. When registering a character string that has already been registered as a keyword, the keyword is selected from the fixed input area 333. In order to store the input content in the DB, the alternative keyword registration button 337 is pressed.
[0031]
If the registered alternative keyword is to be edited / deleted, the keyword to be edited is selected from the alternative keyword list 335 and the alternative keyword extraction button 336 is pressed, so that the selected keyword is entered into the variable input area 332 and the fixed input area 333. It is read and deleted from the alternative keyword DB 23. In the case of editing, the edited content is reflected in the DB by pressing the substitute keyword registration button 337 after editing. When deleting, clear the contents as it is.
[0032]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, the search process is not limited to searching for only the keyword input by the user, but a search using alternative keywords corresponding to the content of the keyword is simultaneously performed. Therefore, if the user can input only some keywords, information corresponding to the keyword can be obtained, and the search can be easily performed without knowing the detailed classification of the search target.
[0033]
Furthermore, the relationship between the keyword and the alternative keyword can be set for each user, and a search corresponding to the difference in the way of thinking and rules in the individual or company can be performed.
[0034]
In addition, since the user interface is provided with both a fixed input method in which keywords are displayed in a list and a variable input method in which a free character string can be input, the user can use it according to his / her level.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a human resource management system as an embodiment of a search system of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a data configuration diagram of a human resource information database.
FIG. 3 is a data structure diagram of a keyword database.
FIG. 4 is a data configuration diagram of a related keyword database.
FIG. 5 is a screen image of a search keyword input interface.
FIG. 6 is a screen image of a search result.
FIG. 7 is a screen image of a search keyword registration interface.
FIG. 8 is a screen image of an alternative keyword registration interface.
FIG. 9 is a flowchart of search processing.
FIG. 10 is a flowchart of related keyword expansion processing in search processing;
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Human resource management system, 2 ... Memory | storage means, 3 ... Display means, 4 ... Input means, 11 ... Interface creation means, 12 ... Search processing means, 13 ... Data editing means, 21 ... Human resource information database, 22 ... Keyword database, 23 ... Alternative keyword database, 121 ... Keyword search means, 122 ... Alternative keyword search means

Claims (3)

First storage means for storing information to be searched;
A second storage means for storing a first keyword, a second keyword related to the first keyword, and identification information indicating a relationship between the second keywords in association with each other ;
Means for displaying a search interface screen having a first keyword input section, a first keyword search instruction section, and a second keyword search instruction section on a display means;
Means for receiving, via the input means, a search request including a first keyword and information indicating either the first keyword search instruction or the second keyword search instruction;
Means for determining which one of the first keyword search instruction and the second keyword search instruction is instructed based on the search request;
When the determination result indicates the first keyword search instruction, the first storage means is searched based on the accepted first keyword, while the second keyword search instruction is indicated. , Obtaining the second keyword related to the first keyword with reference to the second storage means, and further determining whether there is the same identification information for the second keyword, and said judgment result, and means for searching said first storage unit based on the first keyword and the second keyword,
Means for displaying the search result on the display means by distinguishing the search result by the first keyword and the search result by the second keyword;
A search system characterized by that. The search interface screen further includes a fixed character string input unit for designating the first keyword used for the search from a fixed character string, and a variable character string input unit for inputting a free character string. The search system according to claim 1 , wherein: The second keyword, the search system according to claim 1 or claim 2, characterized in that an alternative keywords regarded as the first keyword in the same content as the content.

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